An Extremely Strange Turn of Events
by Saria Skye
Summary: All she wanted was to be able to do her senior project on paleontology! She never bargained for getting chased around by giant dinosaurs and inadvertently caught up in the middle of their war! Although it seemed like a small price to pay for the adventure of a lifetime! And she thought high school and her home life was stressful. . . (Rated T for some possible future content.)
1. Chapter 1

**So, not sure if anyone knows or remembers this show. I know I didn't start watching it until recently! However, once it was introduced to me I quickly got into it for reasons I didn't at first understand. But on closer inspection, I've realized that there are two very significant reasons that I like this silly cartoon so much, and those are: Scott McNeil and Garry Chalk! These guys are awesome! :D**

* * *

The sun beat down with it's searing, hot rays as Alexa gingerly climbed out of her car. She'd just pulled into the parking lot of the Dinosaur Museum, finally ready to get started on her senior project. She'd always been interested in excavation and fossils, so much so that it was what she aspired for her career. What better place to conduct her research? She was also hoping to be able to do the internship portion of her project here as well. Hopefully the rumors about the curator being nice were true.

As she made her way inside, she couldn't help but be taken back to all of her fond memories. She used to come here a lot as a little girl. It had always been her favorite place to visit, even more so than the water parks and video arcades that the other kids would rave about. She'd take a field trip to here over Fiesta Fun any day!

However, as she stepped through the front gate, she was a little disappointed to see how run-down the place looked. Almost as though it had been completely shut down! The outer area was full of junk. Things like old cars and broken electronics littered the grounds. She knew it had been a few years since she'd last visited, but she hadn't heard anything about it being turned into a junk yard!

The main building that housed most of the exhibits seemed to still be standing. Alexa stepped through the entrance doors, not surprised to find that the ticket counter was unmanned. The gift shop was in disarray with old cheesy toys and colored rocks strewn about. The exhibits beyond, and just about everything else, was covered in a layer of dust and cobwebs. It really did look abandoned.

She had a small hope that there was still someone who took care of the place. She figured they wouldn't just leave the doors unlocked like that otherwise.

"Hello?" she called out with uncertainty. Her voice sounded echo-y in the large, empty building. "Is there anyone here?"

When she didn't get a response, she began to move deeper through the museum. Little did she know, that there actually was someone there. Someone watching her from the shadows.

. . .

This girl – she looked like she was too young to be wandering around on her own. Not that Bullzeye was an expert on human ages or anything. She was dressed in khaki shorts, and blue tank-top, tennis shoes, and had a backpack that looked like a blue turtle shell with spikes on it. Her dark, auburn hair was pulled back into a curly pony-tail, and her bangs swished back and forth across her forehead as she glanced around.

He decided he should probably go let someone know. It would be bad if she accidentally wandered into their home!

He snuck as quietly as he could out of the museum and made a beeline for the house. He burst into the living room to find that most everyone was already gathered there. All eyes turned to him.

"Hey, guess what? There's a girl wandering around in the museum! Probably should go see what she wants, Pork," he said to them, a bit breathlessly. Clearly having no idea how to handle the situation.

"A girl, huh?" he said, rising to his feet. "Wonder what she could be doin' here? Should be interesting." He flashed them all a grin before stepping out of the room.

. . .

Alexa had almost made it to the other side of the building, when she heard a door open. An old man came into her view, dressed in worn out jeans and a vest with a fuzzy, gray beard.

"Well hey there, little lady. What can I do ya for?" he asked her as he came closer.

"Oh, hello. You wouldn't happen to be the owner of the museum, would you? Because I'm looking for him," she told him matter-of-factly.

"Porcupine Duvall, at your service," he said flamboyantly, taking off his hat and making a mock bow. "And who might you be?" he asked.

"Alexa Blake. I'm a high school student. I'm doing my senior project on paleontology, and I had hoped that maybe. . ." she trailed. This was proving to be harder than she thought. She felt nervous about asking now, sort of scared that he might say no.

However, he was just smiling at her, waiting for her to continue. So she took a deep breath and finished with gumption.

"I was hoping that you'd allow me to work for you," she stated.

His response was to give her a quizzical brow.

"I mean, as an intern. You wouldn't have to pay me or anything. I just need a certain amount of internship hours for my project, and also, I thought this would be the perfect place for me to do my research. I would be really, really grateful," she continued quickly, hoping the added info would help sway him in her favor.

"Well," he said after a slight pause. "Not sure if ya noticed, but business ain't exactly boomin' at the moment." He glanced around at the empty building.

"Yeah, it was kinda hard to miss. I used to come here a lot when I was little, and it was always full of people. What happened?" she wondered.

"People just ain't into dinosaurs like they used to be. Everything's all about the future now. The newest and most excitin' tech. That's what all the buzz is about these days. You're the first visitor we've had in a long while now," he explained, sounding kind of sad.

"Oh, I guess I hadn't thought of that. How is it still here if you never have any customers?" she asked.

"Government funding. They still give me grants. Probably just do it for the tax write off," he muttered.

There was a long moment of silence. Alexa wasn't sure what she should do. He hadn't exactly given her an answer, however she could feel her hopes falling. Her chances didn't seem good. She thought about pressing him, but he seemed deep in thought, so she remained respectfully silent.

He must have realized she was still waiting for a response, because he looked back up at her, seeming a bit surprised she was still there.

"Um, I'm not sure what I'd have ya do. . ." he trailed.

"Oh, I'd be willing to do anything! I'd even be willing to – clean," she told him, gazing around at the run down exhibits. "Maybe if I could help get this place cleaned-up, and spread the word about it, people might start visiting again," she suggested. Her eyes shone with optimism.

He chuckled at her enthusiasm. His only concern was – what was he going to do about the Extreme Dinosaurs? Would they be able to stay hidden from her if she was going to be hanging around on a regular basis?

He glanced back up at her. She seemed so sincere and passionate about wanting to do this. How could he crush her dream by telling her no? Where else was she going to intern for a paleontology project?

"Alright, I guess it would be nice ta see the ol' place get a spit-shine. It might not bring the crowds back like it used to, but it'll be good for the artifacts. You've got a deal," he told her, holding out his hand.

She clasped his hand with exuberance, giving it a nice, firm shake.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Duvall. I promise you won't regret it!"

"No need to be all formal. You can just call me Porky," he told her with a grin.

"Oh, okay. Would you mind if I got started right now?" she asked excitedly.

"Uh, no. I suppose that'll be alright," he said.

"Great! Where do you keep the cleaning supplies?" she asked, peering around.

"In that closet there," he said, gesturing to a door that read: _Employees Only_. "But you're gonna need a key," he told her.

He reached down to his belt and pulled a slightly worn, sliver key off of a ring and handed it to her.

"Just start with the general maintenance cleaning. We'll need to use more specialized equipment for the actual exhibits," he explained.

"Yeah, of course," she said, thinking that should be obvious.

"Just holler if ya need anythin'. I'll be by to check back in a little while," he told her and left.

Alexa had to suppress the urge to squeal! This was like a dream come true – almost, she realized as she looked down at the filthy floor before heading over the closet.

. . .

Porky wandered back into the living room of his home, and was met with the expectant faces of his house guests. However, Bullzeye didn't even give him a chance to explain before pelting him with questions.

"Well, who is she? What was she doing here? Did she drive here herself?" he rambled.

"Slow down and I'll tell ya!" he protested.

He then explained who she was, and about the internship, and how he'd – kind of – agreed to it.

"You did what?!" They all demanded in unison.

"She can't be hanging around here! What if she discovers the dinosaurs?" Chedra demanded. "She could blow our cover!"

"Well, as long as she stays in the museum, and ya'll stay in the house while she's here. I figured it would be alright," he defended.

"And what happens if we need to leave cuz the Raptors are causing trouble?" T-Bone pointed out. "I'm betting she's going to notice the flying vehicles."

"If she stays busy, maybe puts on some music, she might not," he attempted to reason.

They all just responded with skeptical looks.

"Come on fellas. How was I supposed to say _no_ to another buddin' paleontologist? Reminds me o' me at that age," he said a bit dreamily.

"It would be a shame to have to ruin her academic future," Stegz agreed.

"And what happens if the world gets ruined by the Raptors because we can't sneak outta here?" Spike asked sarcastically.

"It won't be forever, just until her project's done. It'll be fine!" Porky reassured them. Although nobody felt all that reassured.

. . .

Hours past while Alexa worked. They seemed to almost fly by due to her keeping so busy. The only thing she would have liked was maybe some music to help break up the monotony. She needed to remember to bring a boombox when she came back tomorrow.

She heard the door open and close and Mr. Duvall waltzed in with a couple of glasses in his hand.

"Hey, it's lookin' better in here already! Thought you could use a lemonade break," he told her, handing her the cool glass.

"Wow, yes! Thank you!" she told him, and greedily chugged down half the glass. A water bottle would probably be another good idea to add to her list of supplies to bring.

She then surveyed her handiwork along with him. She had started with the closet itself, organizing and cleaning it before wiping down the door and frame, using the handle to hang her backpack. Then she had moved onto the other surfaces, wiping down glass and table tops. She had been about to start on the floor when he'd come in.

Mr. Duvall took a swig of his own lemonade, and then checked his watch.

"You done good work today, kid. It's about time most folks'll be clocking out. Why don't ya head on home? Your parents'll probably be wonderin' about cha soon," he told her.

"Huh, yeah – sure," she said dismissively. It made Porky wonder what that was about.

"Plus, you got school tomorrow, right?" he asked.

"Yeah, but Friday's are my easy days. Would you mind if I came back in the afternoon, say around 1:30?" she wondered.

"Sure kid, that'll be fine," he told her.

"Sounds good!" She finished her lemonade and handed the cup back to him before grabbing her backpack. "See you tomorrow, Mr. Duvall – uh, I mean, Porky," she corrected, remembering his request. Although it felt strange calling him that.

"Alright, see ya tomorrow."

And with that, she exited the building and headed back to her car.

Today had been a resounding success! She just couldn't wait until the cleaning was done so that she could get to the _project_ part of her project.

. . .

The day just didn't seem to move fast enough, as Alexa impatiently waited for her final bell to ring, so she could head back to the museum. After classes, she stayed just long enough to wolf down some lunch in the cafeteria before rushing out to the parking lot.

Mr. Duvall was waiting in the museum when she hustled through the doors. He was busy hooking up a stereo on one of the tables, which she was really glad for. Because in her haste this morning, she'd completely forgotten about bringing any music. At least she'd remembered a water bottle!

"Good afternoon," she chimed. "Is that for me?"

"Yup. Thought it might help the cleanin' go a bit easier for ya," he explained.

"It certainly will! I really appreciate it, thank you!" she told him.

"Ain't no trouble," he said. "This here is where to adjust the radio, and if you ever wanna bring your own music, here's where the CD's go." He was gesturing to different buttons, showing her how it worked.

"Great! I guess I'll get started then."

Mr. Duvall once again left her to her own devices. She set the radio to a local station and then went to work on the floors.

It didn't take her quite as long as she'd thought. Since there really weren't many obstacles she had to clean under and around, it was pretty straightforward. Now, however, there wasn't much of the general cleaning left. She supposed she could work on the gift shop area, but what she really wanted was to get started on the exhibits. Although, she knew better than to try and tackle those without proper instruction. Well, Mr. Duvall _had_ told her that if she needed anything just to holler, so she set out to find him.

She strolled out into the outer courtyard.

"Excuse me, Mr. Porky?" she called out, but there was no answer. Just the whistling of the desert wind.

Alexa wandered across the yard to the other building, which she guessed was where he lived. She moved up to the front door and knocked. There was no immediate response.

"Hello? Is anybody home?!" she called out and knocked again, but there was still no answer.

What she didn't know was that Porky had also overestimated the amount of time it would take her to finish, and had taken the opportunity to go to the store for groceries with Chedra. So _he_ might not have been home, but someone else was. . .

The dinosaurs were inside alright, but the TV was blaring so loudly that nobody could hear her.

Feeling frustrated, and not liking to waste time, Alexa decided to just try the door. It was unlocked. She slowly poked her head inside and peered around. There wasn't anyone there, but she could hear the TV coming from the other room. She guessed that was probably why he couldn't hear her, and he was on the elderly side, after all.

She followed the sound of the TV, and turned the corner into a living room. She was planning on jokingly scolding him about having the TV too loud. However, the image that met her eyes caused her words to die in her throat!

In the room sat, what appeared to be, four giant, anthropomorphic, mutant dinosaurs! Two of them were sitting on a couch watching the TV, and the other two were seated at a computer – using it!

Alexa was stunned with shock as all their eyes turned to look at her with equal surprise.

"Oh crap!" One of them spoke – _spoke_?! _And_ they could talk!?

Well, that was about the last straw for Alexa! She let out an ear-piercing scream of terror, flipped on her heels, and made a mad dash for the door, running for dear life!

. . .

Bullzeye was the first to react. He leapt up from the couch and flew through the nearby window to cut her off at the front door. He knew that they couldn't let her get away, now that she'd seen them!

The girl threw open the door, but froze once she saw him blocking her path. He wanted to say something to her, but she immediately whipped around and ran in the opposite direction, deeper into the house. The other guys were hurrying after her as she made her way into the bedrooms.

Alexa ran all the way to the very end bedroom, and saw to her horror that it was a dead end! Her eyes darted around the room to try and find another way. There was a window, but it was too small for her to squeeze through quickly, and the dinosaur mutants were almost to her!

In her panicked state, the only solution she could devise was diving underneath the bed. Never mind that they could probably just lift the whole thing up to get to her! But logic wasn't exactly at the forefront of her reasoning right now.

She began to try and worm her way in between all the junk that had been stashed under there, frantically shoving things aside. She heard them come into the room, and glanced back to see the one who had blocked her way before, peering under the bed at her, and reaching out to grab her! She screamed again and began throwing whatever she could get her hands on at him!

"Hey, wait – we're not gonna – ouch!" he exclaimed, as a small desk fan slammed into his face.

Bullzeye instinctively reared back and stood up, rubbing his throbbing nose.

"Man, this girl means business," he said, with a hiss of pain.

"Here, why don't you let me try?" Stegz suggested.

He leaned down to take a look. The girl had managed to work her way to the far corner against the wall, and had set up a barricade of the random things Porky had under his bed to block them from trying to reach her again.

"Listen, you don't have to be afraid," he tried to tell her.

"Stay away from me, you monster!" she screamed at him, clearing not listening to anything he was saying.

He felt the _monster_ comment sting his feelings a little bit, but he knew it was only because she didn't know any better. Realizing that this was obviously a fruitless battle, he stood back up with the others. They all paused for a moment, and as the shock and confusion began to die down a bit, they all heard the girl start crying. Her muffled sobbing coming out from underneath the bed.

"Great, so what do we do now?" T-Bone asked.

"Don't look at me! I don't want another fan to the face." Bullzeye put up his hands defensively.

"Oh God – please God. I don't wanna die! Please just let this be a dream! Wake up Alexa, please wake up!" They all heard her say quietly through her sobbing.

Bullzeye winced at the heartbreaking tone to her voice.

"Guys, she sounds like she's _really_ scared," he commented.

"Yeah? Chasing her around the house probably didn't help," T-Bone added.

"Well, what were we supposed to do? It's not like we could just let her run out and start blabbing to the whole city about us," Spike reasoned.

"True, however, we've made better first impressions," Stegz said with a sigh. They waited for another moment before he suggested, "Maybe we should just give her some time to calm down a little?"

"Alright. Not much else we can do, anyway," T-Bone agreed, rubbing his head with his hand. "But I don't want her trying to sneak outta here without us knowing. So, someone needs to watch the door, at least until Porky and Chedra get back," he ordered.

No one immediately jumped at the assignment, so Stegz finally decided to give in.

"Very well, I will watch out for her," he consented.

"Oh good, cuz I'm not sure I can take much more of that crying," Spike said, before the rest of them moseyed back to the living room.

. . .

Hours seemed to pass while Alexa cowered under the bed. Honestly though, she had no idea how long it had been. She still hadn't woken up, so obviously this wasn't a dream. But still, humanoid, talking dinosaurs?! She knew there had been weird sightings lately, this was Roswell after all, but even in her wildest dreams she never thought _this_ would be possible! She should never have watched all those Jurassic Park movies!

She hadn't been paying too much attention to their conversation. Just enough to know that she was being guarded, so there was no way for her to sneak out of here. However, now that she had stopped crying and calmed down a bit, she began to wonder why they gave up chasing her so easily. And why they hadn't tried anything further.

Despite still feeling scared, Alexa couldn't continue to ignore the burning ache that was moving up and down her cramped legs. She decided to take a chance and stretch out a bit. The movement didn't seem to cause a reaction from her guard, so she rolled over and began to weigh her options.

She didn't get far though, before she heard a door open and close and voices coming from down the hall. As they came closer, she began to make out what they were saying.

"We tried to explain, but I guess she was too scared to listen."

"Yeah, instead she decided to scream and throw stuff."

"I knew this was going to happen! This is why you should listen to me. Let me try and talk to her." It was a woman's voice.

Alexa rolled back over to see some normal sized shoes standing at the end of the bed, and then a face appeared. But it wasn't a normal face! Why would she have expected it to be? It was a lady with blue skin and pointed ears! She let out a cry and tried to scoot even further away, despite there being no more room. What was she? An alien? Guess that might help to explain the talking dinosaurs.

"Hello, Alexa? My name is Chedra. I can understand that you're feeling scared right now, but I want to assure you that nobody here is going to hurt you. I know these guys look big and scary, but they are really very nice," she tried to explain.

"Oh, yeah right! And that's why they won't let me leave!" Alexa croaked out, her voice raw from all the crying.

"They just want to make sure that you won't tell anybody that they're here. There are some – bad people – who are after them, and they can't find out that this is where they live. We'll explain everything to you, if you'd like. So, how about you come out from under the bed?" the blue lady suggested with a smile.

"So you can torture me to death with weird, alien experiments? No way!" she protested.

"I would do no such thing! It violates section 12 – sub paragraph 4 of Quadrainian law in regards to interaction with other species," she seemed to quote.

"I don't believe you!" Alexa yelled at her.

The alien lady sighed in exasperation, and she stood back up to address the others.

"I give up! This girl's impossible!" she ranted.

"Oh, come on Alexa. I'm sorry I got ya into this mess, but look. Ain't nobody done any weird experiments on me or nothin'." It was Mr. Duvall. She recognized his voice.

"For all I know, you're an alien too! I bet this was all just part of your plan. I just wanna go home!" Alexa wailed.

"Ya can't go home. Not till you swear ya won't tell nobody 'bout my friends," he replied sternly.

"If I ever get out of here alive, I'm going to tell absolutely _everybody_!" she yelled and felt hot tears choking at her throat. She couldn't seem to help it, and started crying again.

"If she's gonna be like that, then I say she can just stay under there until she starves," she heard one of them say.

"Spike! That's unkind," another one responded.

"Yeah? Well, she started it," he mumbled and she heard him tromp out of the room.

"Come on guys, this isn't working. We can't force her to do anything she doesn't want to do," another one said.

After that, it sounded like all of them had left the room again. Alexa listened hard to try and find out if there was someone still keeping guard. She didn't hear anything for another long while, so she decided that it may be now or never.

Trying to be as quiet as she possibly could, she began to army crawl back towards the end of the bed to take a look. However, there apparently was still someone in the room. They must have heard her moving, because she heard loud footsteps coming towards the end of the bed.

The face of the green dinosaur appeared in front of her, and she let out a gasp and hunkered down. He visibly sighed.

"Look, Alexa. Don't you think that if we wanted to harm you, we would have done it already?" he reasoned.

Alexa wasn't sure, but he seemed to be a little – sad?

"I– I don't–" She wasn't sure how to respond to that. He did have a point, after all.

"I swear, we're not going to hurt you. So, will you please come out? You can't stay under there forever," he said softly, and gave her a kind smile.

She thought it over and realized that he was right. They could have caught her and eaten her long before this if they wanted to. Not to mention that she was getting super sore from cowering under the bed for so long, and he seemed like he was being sincere. Also she felt tired, really tired.

"Yeah, okay," she consented wearily and crawled towards him. He backed up so she had some room.

"And, you won't tell anyone about us, will you?" he asked hopefully.

"No, I–," she attempted to stand up, but she suddenly felt an overwhelming wave of dizziness wash over her, like all the blood was rushing out of her head.

She felt herself falling, but the dinosaur stuck out his arm, breaking her fall before everything went black.

* * *

**I felt like this was a much more logical reaction for someone to have when faced with _actual_ live dinosaurs! It always felt like the people in the show were too calm and casual at the first introductions. So, I thought to remedy that. :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright! Back with another chapter! Now that all the crazy excitement is out of the way, I thought it was time for a bit of awkward fluff, and maybe a little backstory. :P Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Stegz wasn't sure what to do after the girl collapsed in his arms. He had a slight moment of panic, hoping that she hadn't expired right there! However, he quickly confirmed that she was still breathing. So he gathered her up, cradling her gently. He decided to take her out to Chedra and Porky to make sure she was okay.

"Whoa! Hey Stegz, you didn't knock her out, did you?" Bullzeye asked hesitantly when he saw the unconscious girl in his arms.

"What? No! I convinced her to come out from under the bed, and she just kind of, passed out," he explained, then held her out for Chedra to see. "Is she going to be okay?" he asked.

Chedra ran a strange scanner over the top of the girl, reading her vitals and current body condition.

"Yes, she's going to be fine. She's just exhausted, probably crashed after all that adrenaline from being so scared before. She'll wake up after she's had some rest," Chedra explained.

"So, how _did_ you convince her to come out?" Bullzeye asked, getting a closer look at her now that she was safely unconscious.

"Reasoning, and being nice, I guess?" Stegz said with a shrug. If he was being honest, he wasn't really sure how either.

"Well, it doesn't look like she's gonna be waking up any time soon. Guess she's gonna have to stay here for the night," T-Bone realized.

"Let's go ahead and put her to bed on the couch. In fact, it's actually getting pretty late. We should all be heading to bed, especially now that our latest problem has been solved, for now," Chedra told everyone.

"Awww, but Chedra! We don't wanna go to bed yet!" Spike and Bullzeye protested in practically perfect sync.

"Hey, you don't have to go to bed, but you can't stay here. This girl needs her rest," T-Bone ordered them.

"Oh, okay," Bullzeye sighed in understanding resolve.

"Fine," Spike consented, but not without sounding grumpy about it.

After they had vacated, Chedra retrieved an extra blanket and pillow and spread them out on the couch in an attempt to make it more comfortable for their surprise house guest.

"Alright, there you go. Have a good night, Stegz," she told him, and followed the others to her own room.

"Okay, you too," he called after her.

Stegz made a move to lay Alexa down on the make-shift bed, but the motion must have roused her a little. She moaned in displeasure at being disturbed and curled more into him, resting her cheek against his torso.

In that moment, Stegz felt his stomach flutter and his heartbeat skip. He'd never been _this_ close to a human before, especially a _female_ human.

Her small body was so soft and warm pressed up against him. It was oddly – comforting. The thought made him blush, and he suddenly realized that he didn't really _want_ to put her down. Partly because he was afraid it would wake her up, and partly because. . . well, maybe it wouldn't hurt to hang out for just a few minutes.

He sat down on the couch, resting her in his lap, and spent the next few minutes just watching her chest rise and fall as she slept. He began to feel, well, he wasn't really sure what he was feeling. He just knew that he didn't want to go to bed, because that would make the morning come all the faster. And when tomorrow came, there was little doubt in his mind that she wouldn't been real keen on sticking around.

On the other hand, if anyone were to stumble in and catch him like this, that would be – exceedingly embarrassing! She suddenly began to move in her sleep, and when she did, some of her hair fell into her face. It seemed to be bothering her, so he reached over and brushed it aside. He couldn't help but notice how smooth her skin felt on his rough, reptilian hand.

A second later, he quickly snapped it away, stopping himself right there. This was not a good idea. He couldn't let himself get attached! He needed to just put her down and go to bed. After everything that had happened today, he reminded himself again that this girl was probably going to get up the next morning, leave, and never come back! There was no point.

Even so, his body didn't seem to want to move. He could feel his eyelids getting heavy as the heat from her naturally warm-blooded nature continued to soak into him. He was just going to rest his eyes – just for a few minutes. . .

. . .

Alexa woke up feeling very disoriented and confused. She didn't remember ever going to bed. Her eyelids fluttered open to find that it was still very dark, but she didn't seem to be in her room. Nothing looked familiar. She began to try and focus on her surroundings through her foggy vision, to figure out where she was, but that was when she heard the snoring, and _felt_ the breathing!

Several things then seemed to happen at once. Alexa looked up to see a giant – creature – above her. She thought it was some kind of monster! However, at the same time, all of the memories from yesterday came flooding back to her, and she realized it was just the green dinosaur from before. She had to quickly clamp her hands over her mouth to stifle the scream that threatened to escape in her surprise.

She then took a couple of deep breaths to try and steady her nerves and get a baring on what was happening. After a few moments, she realized that the snoring was coming from the dinosaur. He was asleep – and she was – in his lap? That was, a little strange.

Alexa glanced around to see that they were on the couch in the living room where she'd first seen the dinosaurs. She then tried to recall what had happened for her to have ended up – like _this._ She remembered trying to come out from under the bed, but then feeling really dizzy. Had she fainted? Well that was embarrassing! This dinosaur must have carried her out here after she'd passed out. It made her wonder how long she'd been unconscious.

She didn't have to wonder long, however, as the first glimpses of the dawn's light began leaking in through the windows, casting everything in a hazy blue. She couldn't _believe_ she'd slept until morning! And this dinosaur – had he been holding her all night?

If the situation were different, and he'd been a handsome young man, and not a mutant, anthropomorphic dinosaur, she might have thought that such a situation would be, kind of – romantic. As it stood however, it just felt strange. She needed to get out of here!

Alexa attempted to ease herself up to try and get off of him without waking him up. Easier said than done, though. Her movements caused him to stir, and she didn't know if it was instinct or what, but he gripped her tighter against him before resettling. Great, well now she really couldn't move! What was she supposed to do now? She thought about trying to wake him up, but she didn't want to startle him, or worse, make him cranky! She guessed there was nothing she could do but wait until he woke up on his own.

Ultimately, it was the bright orange rays of sun coming though the windows that finally roused him. The dinosaur slowly opened his eyes, squinting at the light. He looked around like he was a bit disoriented himself, before peering down at Alexa with a confused look. Realization crept across his face after a moment.

"Oh no!" he said, rubbing his free hand over his eyes. "I must've dozed off," he mumbled. He looked down at Alexa again with a sheepish smile as she blinked up at him, feeling very unsure of what to do.

"I – um – " he stuttered. "I'm a little surprised that you haven't tried to leave," he told her.

"Well, actually – I did _try_, to be honest," she confessed, glancing down at the large, imposing arm still surrounding her.

"Oh, I'm sorry about that," he said quickly.

"So, would you mind, putting me down now?" she requested carefully.

"Oh, yes. Of course," he told her, and placed her on the couch next to him. He then got up to stand in front of her.

"Is there anything I can get you? Do you need anything?" he asked.

"Uh, no, that's okay," she assured him. "But, I think I should probably be getting home now," she said, and made a move to get up to leave.

"Wait! Um – I think the others will want to speak with you. That is, if you don't mind waiting for a little while longer," he tried to convince her.

Alexa felt too drained to really argue, even after all that sleep. What did she have to lose, anyway? So she just shrugged.

"Okay, sure. But, do you have a bathroom that I could maybe – freshen up in?" she asked.

"Oh, yes. It's just down the hall and to your left," he gestured in the direction.

"Thank you," she said and crept into the room.

She took the time to use the facilities, rinse off her face, and redo her hair. Then she took a good, long look in the mirror. Was she losing her mind? She was still having a hard time believing all of this was real. Not only did anthropomorphic, talking dinosaurs exist, but she'd just spent the night in their home – on one of their laps, no less! She'd never expected such monstrous looking creatures to be – nice, but so far the green one had been very polite. Even after that weird encounter this morning.

Alexa walked back out into the living room to see the green dinosaur sitting on the couch, presumably waiting for her. He looked stiff as a board, like he was nervous. Well, he wasn't the only one.

She moved over to join him, but sat down on the opposite end of the sofa, as far away as she could. When she did, she also picked up the pillow that was there and put it in her lap, curling herself around it for comfort. It helped a little.

She just felt so – out of place here. Like she really didn't belong, and it made her nervous and uncomfortable. She wasn't sure what to do with herself while they were waiting for the others to wake up. She supposed that a normal person would try to strike up a conversation, but what on earth was she supposed to talk to him about? Besides, it's not like _any_ of this was normal!

Alexa felt something on her back, and she involuntarily jumped when she turned to see that the dinosaur was draping the blanket over her. He froze for a second at her reaction and looked startled himself. She blew out a sigh and faced forward again.

"I'm sorry," she told him, rubbing a hand over her face.

"It's okay," he assured her, and finished setting the blanket on her shoulders. "I'm sure all of this must be a bit, overwhelming," he guessed.

"Yeah, a bit," she said sarcastically, wrapping the blanket more tightly around her. That seemed to help too. It made her feel less exposed.

They both suddenly heard some commotion coming from down the hall. It was Porky. He was stretching and yawning, but then grinned when he saw them both.

"Well, good morning Miss Alexa. I trust you slept well last night?" he asked with a knowing smile.

"Uh, yeah, I suppose," she said, and found herself having a hard time looking him in the eye.

"And – you too, Stegz?" he asked.

"Sure, I slept fine," he said quickly, not meeting Porky's gaze either.

"Did you even _go_ ta bed last night?" Porky asked skeptically.

"Yes, of course I went to bed!" Stegz exclaimed with a haughty air. "I just, wanted to get up early to check on Alexa," he tried to defend, but they both knew it was a lie.

"Uh huh," was all Porky's response was before leaving the room.

"Oh gawd," Alexa said in a strained voice, burying her face in her pillow to try and hide her embarrassment.

"I'm sorry, Alexa! I didn't actually mean to – but – thanks for not telling him ab–" he tried to stutter out, but she cut him off.

"Please, don't mention it," she said, but then heard him make a noise to continue. "Ever!" she emphasized firmly but quietly.

"Uh, right," he said and faced forward again.

Alexa chanced a glance up at him, and the expression he had on his face was so serious, she couldn't help but let out a small laugh. He looked back down at her and smiled.

"So," she started, trying to think of something to say to help ease the tension before she exploded. "You seem to know my name well enough. What's yours?" she asked.

"Stegz," he told her matter-of-factly.

"Oh, right. I guess that makes sense," she said, despite it seeming a little on the nose.

"And, how did you – you know, learn to do the talking, and everything? If you don't mind my asking."

"Well, it's kind of a long story. You see 65 million years ago, there was this alien named Argor from a different dimension who wanted to build an army of dinosaurs and use them to help conquer his home planet. . ."

He then went on to explain about the Quadrainians, and how they were made intelligent by their technology, but wouldn't agree to follow the evil alien. So, he mutated some raptors to help him instead. But then how some overpowered alien weapon torched the planet and caused the extinction of the dinosaurs. Only Chedra, the nice alien lady, put them all into stasis on her ship, and that's where they were eventually discovered just recently. Only the evil raptor dinosaurs were wanting to try and change the planet so it would go back to how it was in dinosaur times, and their group of good dinosaurs would always do their best to stop them and protect the Earth.

Alexa just blinked at him. His story sounded completely ridiculous! However, she couldn't dispute the fact that the proof of his explanation was sitting right next to her.

More commotion down the hall caught their attention as the rest of the dinosaur pack made their way into the living room. Alexa had to fight the urge to recoil. They were all just so, big!

"Hey, look at that. She's still here! Guess you were wrong, Spike," the red one with wings said.

The blue one he was speaking to just crossed his arms and humphed in response. Guess everyone had been expecting her to bolt. He came closer to her, seemingly to try and get a better view, but still appeared a bit wary.

"You're not going to throw anything at me again, are you?" he asked, cringing.

Alexa shook her head. "I'm sorry about that. Is your nose okay?"

"Yeah, it's alright," he told her, rubbing at it, and seemed to relax some.

"And I'm sorry about everything – from before. I – guess I overreacted, a little," she admitted.

"Huh, a _little_?" the blue one questioned skeptically.

"Spike. . ." the yellow T-Rex said in a scolding tone. "Be nice."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever," he huffed.

The T-Rex came around to face her as well, and Alexa felt herself involuntarily leaning back.

"So, your name is Alexa, right?" he asked her.

She nodded.

"I'm T-Bone, leader of the Extreme Dinosaurs, and this is Bullzeye and Spike – and you seem to already be acquainted with Stegz," he told her, gesturing to everyone in turn.

Alexa opened her mouth to comment, but was interrupted by the alien lady coming into the room. She was carrying a steaming cup of – something.

"Good morning, everyone. Here Alexa, I made you some tea," she told her, handing her the cup. "I've heard that it helps have a calming effect on humans," she explained.

"And this is Chedra," T-Bone continued, in reference to the alien lady.

"So, you're trying to sedate me with tea?" she asked with a touch of humor, staring into the glass.

"What? No! I didn't mean to – I just thought it might help you feel better," she tried to explain. Alexa couldn't help but grin at how flustered she got.

"Uh, Chedra. I think that was supposed to be a joke," Bullzeye told her, noticing Alexa's reaction.

"Oh, yes, of course," she said, catching herself.

"Thank you, Chedra. I do appreciate it," Alexa then told her seriously, taking a small sip of the tea.

"So, has anyone explained anything?" Chedra asked the room.

"I was just explaining things to her, until I was interrupted," Stegz said, sounding a bit irritated.

"Are we sure that's such a good idea? I mean, what's to stop her from repeating it all to the humans?" Spike asked skeptically.

"She's not going to do that, Spike. She already said so," Stegz told him.

"Really? Last I checked she was planning on 'telling absolutely everybody'," he quoted her, and she winced at hearing her words from earlier repeated.

"She probably didn't really mean it, and only said that because she was scared," Chedra reasoned.

"How do you know?" Spike argued.

"Will you please stop talking about me like I'm not here!" Alexa finally snapped at them all. "Look, I'm not going to tell anyone. It's not like anyone is going to believe me anyways. And if I'm too persistent about it, they'll probably force me to pee in a cup."

They all blinked at her, like they didn't understand her inference. Alexa just sighed and took a long drink of the tea, before rising to her feet.

"Now, it was very – interesting – meeting you all, but if you'll excuse me I really should be getting home." She handed the cup back to Chedra and made her way towards the door.

"Hey, wait!" Bullzeye attempted to stop her.

Alexa paused in the doorway before turning to face him.

"Are you – gonna come back?" he asked.

She felt surprised at the question – to say the least, and she hesitated. She hadn't really thought about it. She supposed she still needed to work on her senior project, but – did they really _want_ her to come back? She thought about asking, however, they were all staring at her expectantly. So it _seemed_ like they did. All except for Spike, anyway. He looked like he couldn't care less.

"I – uh. . . I supposed so. I do want to finish my project, after all. So – bye for now," she told them, flashing a quick wave and hurrying out the door before they could ask any more questions.

. . .

Everyone was pretty much where she expected them to be when she got home. Her father and mother were parked in front of the TV in the living room, and her brothers were in their room in front of the other TV, arguing about whatever game they were playing.

"Hey! Where you been, girl?" her father asked in a gruff tone. "Off hussyin' around no doubt," he barked out a crude laugh at the comment.

"Oh now, Jon. You know good n' well that no boy would wanna have anythin' to do with 'Lexa! She's too plain," her mother 'lovingly' added.

"Thanks mom. I so appreciate that," Alexa told her, her tone dripping with sarcasm and disdain. Not that she picked up on it, mind you.

"If you must know, I was out late working on my project," she told them, and that was all she would tell them. "Not that you'd know anything about that," she muttered under her breath.

"What was that?! Don't you sass me, girl!" he snapped.

Her father had been 'retired' ever since he hurt his back six years ago, and they'd been 'living' off of his disability ever since. If you could call it living. Everyone had thought it was such a lucky break, except for Alexa. It had done nothing but turn him into a fat slob.

She was old enough to realize that they were barely getting by, but nobody cared to do anything about it. Only when things got really desperate would her mother finally get of her butt to clean some houses for extra cash. A very little extra cash. She wasn't all that great at her job.

"Kitchen's dirty from last night, and we ain't had breakfast," he complained at her, throwing an empty beer can.

"Why yes, my liege. I'll get right on that," she said with mocking respect.

"Breakfast first!" he ordered, completely ignoring her tone. They'd grown accustomed to her sarcasm, and didn't much care as long as she did the chores.

Alexa tossed her things in her room and poked her head in to check on her brothers.

"Anyone wanna help me in the kitchen?" she suggested.

"No way, 'Lexa!" one of them said.

"Yeah, it's Saturday morning. You know Saturday is game day," the other one added.

"Okay, but if I don't have any help, it's gonna take that much longer for me to get breakfast," she warned.

"Don't care."

"Yeah, we got snacks anyways."

"Fine," Alexa sighed.

She figured they wouldn't go for it, but she just thought she'd try. Hopeless, both of them!

She then went to work in the kitchen, cleaning only what was necessary before starting on food. Pancakes, eggs, and bacon and sausage – with plenty of grease!

After she was finished, she took two large platefuls out to her parents and set them on their permanent tray tables.

"Took ya long enough! Fetch me another beer too," her father demanded.

Without a word, Alexa went to the fridge to pull out beers for her parents. She had given up on arguing a long time ago. In their minds it was never too early to get drunk. After all, it was five o'clock somewhere.

"Jeff! Austin! Come get breakfast!" she shouted down the hall at them.

"Can you bring it to us?!" she heard back.

"No! Get your lazy butts out here and fix your own plate! It'll take you five seconds!" she reasoned.

Eventually they came grumbling out of their room. Each of them fixed a plate and immediately went back to gaming. Alexa then busied herself with cleaning the kitchen, and then the rest of the house. Well, most of it. She would get hollered at if she tried to do something loud, like vacuum. Not that the heavily stained, threadbare carpet would benefit from it anyway!

It was early afternoon when she finished. She grabbed some leftovers from the morning meal and made her way into her brother's room to join them. They were playing Smosh Bros. on the 64. Jeff was the oldest, but only by about a year, and Austin was a couple years behind both of them. They all shared the same color auburn hair, which her brothers wore messy and shaggy.

She watched them for a while, while she ate, and then later joined in after she finished. This was really the only times when she felt truly happy, gaming with her brothers. They might have taken after their parents in the lazy department, but at least they were willing to share. Just as long as sharing didn't mean one of them wouldn't get to participate.

After a few hours of game play, the time rolled around for Alexa to start on dinner, which typically consisted of some sort of meat and potatoes. Then it was time to work on her project and other school work for a little while before bed. Her family continuing in their aforementioned activities the entire time. It was a pretty typical Saturday, if she pretended like this morning never happened.

Speaking of which, as she was moving through her nightly routine of getting ready for bed, she was contemplating her plans for the next day. It was still a bit early to be going to sleep, but she had been wanting to get an early start, so she could get over to the museum to keep working. However, she wasn't sure if it was such a good idea for her to go back.

She actually laid awake in bed for a while thinking about it. Maybe it was one of those things where the less she knew about it, the better. Still, she _had_ told them she would go back. She could have been reading it wrong, but it also seemed like they _wanted_ her to come back. Well all of them except for the one called Spike. He didn't act like he was all that thrilled with her, but she couldn't really blame him. In the end, she decided that she really didn't have anything to lose. This was the most exciting thing that had ever happened to her, and a selfish part of her didn't want it to just go away.

* * *

**So, what should Alexa do? I guess the story would probably be pretty short and boring if she decided to never go back. . . But you'll have to wait and see! :D**


	3. Chapter 3

_Easier said than done, though_, Alexa thought, as she stood in front of Mr. Duvall's front door the next morning. It seemed a bit silly, but she felt nervous anyway. This was completely new territory for her, or anyone for that matter. Nevertheless, she wasn't going to get anywhere just standing outside the door like this. So, she took a deep breath, raised her hand, and gave the door a firm series of knocks.

Things went a little differently compared to yesterday, as Mr. Duvall was actually around to answer his door this time.

"Well, hello Alexa! Glad ta see ya decided to come back. Wasn't too sure after yesterday," he confessed.

"I said I would, didn't I?" she reminded him, sounding much more confident than she actually felt.

"That you did." He then motioned for her to come inside.

"How'd your family react when ya got home after bein' out all night? Hope everything turned out okay," he asked her.

"Oh, yeah. It was fine," she told him flatly.

"What'd ya say to 'em?" he wondered.

"Just –" she paused, trying to think of what a normal teenager would tell their parents. "That I was over at a friend's house," she decided, and stepped into the living room.

"Hey Stegz! Looks like your little girlfriend decided to come back after all," Spike teased when he saw her.

They were all gathered in about the same way they were when she'd first discovered them. Stegz swiveled in his chair at the computer to flash a glare at Spike, but then smiled when he turned to Alexa.

"Don't mind him. He isn't being serious," Stegz told her.

"I – figured," she assured him.

"Alexa! You came back!" Bullzeye called happily to her, as he entered the room from the opposite door.

"Yeah, well, like I said, I need to work on my project. Besides, it's – not every day you get to talk to _actual_ dinosaurs," she reasoned.

"The glamour wears off after a 'while. Trust me," Mr. Duvall muttered to her.

"Hey!" Bullzeye protested at the comment, which caused Alexa to chuckle a bit.

This was then followed by a long, awkward silence that Alexa finally decided to break.

"So anyway," she said, turning to Mr. Duvall. "I've finished with the main cleaning, and I'm ready to get started on the exhibits," she told him.

"Alrighty, let's go get cha all set up." And with that, they both headed out towards the museum.

Alexa released a big sigh once they were outside. That hadn't been so bad, just a little uncomfortable. If that was the worst this was going to get, then she was pretty sure she could handle it.

"They seem to like ya alright," Mr. Duvall commented with a smile.

"I don't think Spike cares for me much," she responded.

"Oh, he'll come 'round. Just a bit flustered from everything still 's all," he explained.

"It's okay. He doesn't _have_ to like me. None of them do," she reasoned.

"I think you'll have a hard time getting 'em ta _not_ like ya. They're a pretty friendly bunch," he assured her.

_Yeah, they sure seemed that way_, Alexa thought.

"I understand why you didn't tell me about them before, but – a _little_ heads up would have been nice," she mentioned after a moment.

"Sorry 'bout that, but didn't expect ya ta be walking into the house without a warnin'," he explained.

"In my defense, it wasn't completely without warning. I did knock first, and I tried calling for you," she argued.

"Yeah, probably shouldn't've gone ta the store. Didn't figure you'd get done with the cleanin' so fast, though," he reasoned.

"I try to be efficient."

When they reached the museum, Mr. Duvall had her start on one of the simpler exhibits. It depicted what scientists thought a Mastodon would look like in it's natural habitat. However, this Mastodon was covered in 'skin' and not 'fur'. Mr. Duvall pulled out some very special cleaning equipment, and instructed her on how to wipe the dust away without damaging the statues or imitation plants. It required special cleaning liquid and a lot of patience!

"When ya finish workin' on all the dio-ramas, then I can show ya the real fun part – restorin' actual fossils!" he told her with a grin. It was obvious that he was passionate about it.

"That sounds cool. I'll be looking forward to that!" Alexa said honestly with her own enthusiasm, before climbing into the exhibit with the ancient pachyderm.

. . .

Meanwhile, the dinosaurs were busy going about their usual daily tasks, and for Bullzeye that meant extensive amounts of the shopping network. However, things seemed to be a little – off today. He was having a hard time concentrating on what was happening on the TV. He kept glancing behind him, in the direction of the dinosaur museum.

It wasn't long before Stegz began to pick up on his restlessness.

"Bullzeye, if you want to go talk to her, then why don't you just go over there?" he suggested.

"Well, I don't want to bother her. . ." he trailed.

"So, instead, you're going to stay here and bother me?" Stegz grumbled.

"Hey! This is our home. If she's bothered by us, then she can leave!" Spike snapped.

"Alright, that's enough!" T-Bone announced as he entered the room, Chedra right behind him. "You need to start being nicer to her, Spike," he ordered.

"Why should I?" he glowered.

"Like it or not, she knows about us now. Which means we all need to learn to get along with her, and that'll be easier if we could be friends," he reasoned.

"Yeah, I guess," Spike admitted.

"T-Bone is right. I think you going over and talking to her is a great idea, Bullzeye," Chedra chimed in, smiling at him encouragingly.

"Okay," he said enthusiastically, hopping off the couch and heading out the door.

. . .

Alexa heard the door to the museum open and close, so she poked her head out of the exhibit to see who it was, and was a little surprised to find Bullzeye padding towards her. Although as he got closer, his pace seemed to slow. He looked a bit, unsure, so she decided to address him first.

"Hi, Bullzeye. Did you get bored watching TV?" she wondered.

"Well, no – I just. . ." he stuttered awkwardly. She waited for a moment, but he didn't continue.

"Okay, is there something you needed from me?" she asked.

"Well, I hoped – I mean I was just wondering – would you mind if I. . ." he paused again. This time, she patiently waited for him to finish. "Hung out with you?" he finally asked sheepishly.

"You want to hang out? With me?" she asked skeptically, but he nodded all the same.

"Um, I'm not doing anything super interesting. Are you sure you want to. . .?" she trailed off at the look of disappointment on his face.

It took her a moment, but then she realized that it wasn't what she was _doing_ that was interesting to him, but Alexa herself. She guessed that meant they didn't get a whole lot of interaction with any humans besides Mr. Duvall. He was probably just curious.

"Not that I'm trying to discourage you, or anything. You can stay, if you really want to," she assured him. He immediately brightened at that.

"Great!" he said happily, sitting down on the edge of the exhibit. "So, what do you like to do for fun?" he wondered.

"Uh, well –" she wasn't really sure how to respond. She didn't have a whole lot of time for 'fun'. "Usually I play video games with my brothers," she told him.

"Really? So what's your family like?" he asked.

"They're – okay, I guess," she said with a shrug. This was another uncomfortable question. "You can't choose your family, ya know?" She grinned at him, trying to play it off.

"Yeah, I hear you. Oh, so what about. . ."

This constant line of questioning then went on for some time. Bullzeye seemed very eager to learn as much as he possibly could about her, no matter how mundane her answers were. Alexa began to slowly understand that these dinosaur guys must also be very lonely. After all, there was no one else like them in the world, and the only company they seemed to have besides each other, were the alien lady and Mr. Duvall. That would explain why he was so interested in her, even though she was, for the most part, rather uninteresting.

Hours past as she worked and answered Bullzeye's questions about herself and the world as a whole. Until finally, the day began to draw to a close. Alexa finished up what she was doing and packed all her tools away, storing them in the closet.

"You all finished for now?" Bullzeye asked, still trailing after her as she worked.

"That's right," she stated flatly. She grabbed her backpack and headed for the door, Bullzeye following closely behind.

"So, now what?" he wondered, as they stepped outside.

"Uh, now I go home?" she offered in a tone indicating that this should be obvious.

"Wait – you're leaving?" he asked, his expression falling. He sounded almost, forlorn about the idea.

"Yes, I have school in the morning," she reasoned.

"What's that?" he asked, with a completely deadpan expression.

"Really?" she wondered with exasperation, but he just shrugged.

"Well, it's – where humans spend most of their childhood to learn how to function in the world," she explained as basically as she could.

Bullzeye's brow furrowed in confusion. "That's strange. Aren't you born already knowing how to do those things?"

"Uh no, humans aren't born with instincts. One of the many downsides of being human, I suppose," she confessed, but then another thought occurred to her. "What do you think I'm doing here in the first place?" she asked.

"You wanna learn how to study dinosaurs, like Pork does," he said.

"That's – partially right. I want to be a Paleontologist, which means I need to get a degree, and to do that, I need to go to school," she explained.

"Oh – okay, but – do you really have to go right now?" he asked slowly.

"I –" she blew out a long sigh. She didn't really _have_ to leave right that moment. She was pretty sure her parents were ordering pizza that night. "What am I going to do if I stay?"

Alexa had thought about asking him why he wanted her to stay, but since she was confident she already knew the answer, the question would just end up feeling awkward. So, she figured he probably had something in mind.

"Are you hungry?" he wondered, brightening at the prospect. "I'm sure the guys have fixed dinner by now, and then after that you can watch the Home Shopping Network with me!" he offered enthusiastically.

Alexa gawked at him for a moment before answering. "The – Home Shopping Network? Are you serious?" she was having trouble believing that a dinosaur mutated by alien technology would have any kind of interest in something like that!

"Yeah! It's my favorite station," he grinned at her.

Despite the oddity of the kind offer, Alexa still felt hesitant to head back into the house. Spike clearly didn't like having her around, not to mention the presence of the terrifying tyrannosaurs. However, Bullzeye was staring at her so eagerly that it seemed like it would really hurt his feelings if she refused him. So, after a moment, she reluctantly consented. Although, she tried to hide the reluctance as best she could.

"Okay, sure. I could eat," she told him.

"Great! Let's go," he said, taking hold of her arm and pulling her towards the house. Except that he was so strong, and so excited, that he was practically carrying her!

He burst through the door with her in tow and led her into the kitchen where everyone else was gathered. They were all standing around a table that was filled with what looked like burritos and giant bowls of salsa. All eyes turned to them when they entered, and Spike's were, predictably, narrowed in a glare.

"You're just in time, you two. Ya gonna join us for dinner, Alexa?" Mr. Duvall asked cheerily.

"If – that's alright," she confirmed, which elicited a scoff from Spike. "Bullzeye invited me," she added quickly in response. This didn't seem to affect Spike's demeanor, but Stegz and T-Bone both smiled at her.

"Of course it's alright. We'd love to have you," Stegz assured her.

"If that's the case, then you should fix your plate first with me," Chedra told her. "By the time these guys are done, there won't be anything left!"

"Hey! We usually try to save you some," T-Bone argued. Chedra just rolled her eyes, leading Alexa over to the table.

She quickly grabbed a plate and a couple of burritos before positioning herself off to the side so that she'd be out of the way. The dinosaurs wasted no time in diving into the food. Alexa could only stare in amazement at how quickly they were able to wolf it down. And she thought her brothers had terrible table manners! She managed to take a few bites in between all the crunching, slurping, and flying food bits.

"Mmh, here Alexa, try it with some salsa," Bullzeye encouraged through a mouthful of food. He pushed the bowl closer towards her.

"Oh, um, no thank you. I don't really like salsa," she politely declined.

You would have thought she'd just slapped someone by the way they all reacted. Everyone in the room instantly froze, and they all stared at her in disbelief. Alexa felt herself shrinking back at the scrutinizing looks. Had she said something wrong?

"How can you not like salsa? It's only the single greatest thing you humans have ever invented!" Spike lectured her.

"I'm – sorry, but I just don't really care for spicy food. I don't think eating should have to be a painful experience," she explained.

Spike narrowed his eyes, and made a move towards her like he was going to attack! However, Stegz stuck an arm out to stop him.

"And there's nothing wrong with that," he said quickly, further discouraging the aggravated triceratops. "Everyone's entitled to their own opinion, Spike."

"I guess, even if it's a terrible opinion!" Spike snapped and proceeded to exit the room.

"So," T-Bone suddenly spoke up, breaking the uncomfortable silence Spike had left behind. "Alexa, what made you decide that you wanted to be a Paleontologist?" he asked. Alexa actually jumped when he'd spoken, but she tried to casually play it off.

"Uh, well. I guess I've just always been interested in the idea of – what life was like before people were around. Also, playing in the dirt is fun. I spent a lot of my childhood digging holes in our backyard, much to my parents aggravation," she added with a cheesy grin. "They really didn't like me destroying the lawn, but I guess the idea of finding some kind of treasure or ancient artifact was just too exciting for me to pass up," she explained.

"Sounds like ya really got the heart of a true Paleontologist," Mr. Duvall sighed happily. "Makes me right glad ta know that there are some young people out there who still value the past."

"Well, you know what they say? How are you supposed to know where you're going if you don't know where you came from?" Alexa reasoned.

"Truer words were never spoken!" Mr. Duvall agreed.

Later, they all reconnoitered in the living room to watch TV. It began with the Home Shopping Network, until most of the group grew bored with it, and Alexa suggested they switch to a movie instead. Things seemed to be going alright for the most part, even Spike returned to join them for it. Until a particular scene, and innocently intentioned comment, caused everything to head downhill at a rapid pace.

"I swear, this part gets me every time!" Alexa was commenting and shaking her head. "If he would just stop being so stubborn and listen to his friends, instead of insulting them, then none of that crap would have happened!"

"Well, that's rich, coming from _you_!_"_ she suddenly heard from behind her. Alexa turned to see Spike still glaring at her.

". . . What?" she asked after a moment of hesitation. She wasn't completely sure what he was getting at with that statement.

"Spike. . ." T-Bone let out a low growl of warning. Alexa could feel the tension in the room increasing exponentially!

"I just can't help but think you're being a bit of a hypocrite. After all, you seem to be an expert at insulting others and not listening to them!" he snapped, not seeming to heed the warning at all.

Alexa didn't bother to argue. She just stared down at her lap, before deciding that staying for dinner had obviously been a bad idea.

"Uh, I guess that's my cue," she mumbled, and rose to leave. Making a bee-line for the door before anyone else had a chance to say anything.

As soon as the door clicked closed behind her, all eyes turned towards Spike. Bullzeye was the only one not glaring. He just looked upset about the triceratops driving away his new friend.

"Oh, way to go, Spike! She's probably never going to come back after that! I hope you're proud of yourself!" Stegz was the first to start lecturing.

"I – I mean – it's true, isn't it? Someone had to say it!" he attempted to argue, but it ended up coming out kind of weak.

"No, they didn't! She only said and did those things out of a state of panic and fear. It's not like she was intentionally trying to be malicious! She even apologized and is trying to make up for it, but all you can seem to do is make mean comments and make her feel unwelcome!" Stegz continued.

"He's right, Spike. That was way outta line! We have so few friends here as it is, without you actively trying to get rid of them. I don't know why you still have such a beef with her, but it needs to stop, right now!" T-Bone ordered.

"But – it's obvious she's still scared of us! It's probably only a matter of time before she rats us out," he shot back.

"Oh, she's not gonna do anthin' like that! You're just bein' paranoid!" Porky reasoned.

"Well, either way, someone should probably go talk to her before she leaves. If we do ever want her to come back, that is," Chedra suggested.

"I can go. . ." Bullzeye started, but was cut off by T-Bone.

"No! Spike needs to go, and apologize for what he said!" he insisted.

"What?! But I –" he wasn't able to continue, as the pressure from all the stares of the entire room caused his words to die in his throat. "Ugh! Fine!" he finally consented, and stalked out the door and after the girl.

Alexa could hear the thundering footsteps lumbering up behind her as she was trying to get her car unlocked in the darkness. She figured that it must be one of the dinosaurs coming out to talk to her about what had just happened. Possibly in an attempt to convince her not to leave, but she'd already pretty much made up her mind at that point. She knew how to take a hint.

However, what she had not been expecting to see, was Spike himself chasing after her. She felt very uneasy at this turn of events, and did her best to keep herself on the opposite side of her car, away from the irritated dino.

"Alexa, hang on. Don't go yet," he requested.

"Uh, you really don't have to say anything else. You've already made your point. I won't bother you again," she assured him.

"Actually – that's not why – I came out here. . ." he trailed, looking a little unsure.

"Okay, so then why did you come out here?" she wondered.

"I – I wanted to – apologize," he muttered, looking as though the words were painful for him to say.

Alexa wasn't sure how to respond. Why the sudden change in attitude? She was having a hard time believing that he was actually sorry. He was probably just pressured into it by the others.

"Why? I thought you hated me," she stated flatly. "I figured you'd be happy if I didn't come back."

"No, ugh! I don't hate you, I just –" he stopped and sighed. He looked like he was searching for words. "Look, I was just, doing what I thought I needed to, to protect my friends. They're like family to me, you know?" Alexa nodded, choosing not to comment. "And the way you acted before, screaming at us and calling us monsters, it really hurt their feelings. I just, didn't want to see them get hurt again, is all," he explained.

She waited to see if he was going to say anything else. When he didn't, she realized that she was going to have to say something.

"I understand. If you're still that worried, I don't have to come back. I'm sure I can find another way to finish my project, and that way you can –" she didn't get a chance to finish before he cut her off.

"No! Please don't say that!" He looked remorseful as he moved around to try and join her on the driver's side of the car. As such, Alexa couldn't help but feel compelled to take a few steps backwards. "I'm really sorry about what I said before. The guys will never forgive me if you don't ever come back," he implored her.

"O-okay. It's okay," she tried to assure him, nervously shuffling to keep some distance between them.

"Well, you don't have to sound so scared about it! It's not like I'm going to force you to come back if you don't want to," he told her, irritability.

"I'm sorry. It's just – it's a little, intimidating, knowing that you could easily crush me if I make you mad," she mumbled. "And, I don't want to cause any more problems. . ." she trailed.

He sighed again. "You're not a problem, at least, not anymore. And I would never do that! I've just been overreacting, is all. . ." he paused for a moment. "I guess it's fair to say that we kinda got off on the wrong foot," he surmised.

Alexa nodded in agreement.

"So, how about we start over?" he suggested, and smiled at her for the first time.

Alexa stopped cringing and took a moment to mull it over. "Okay," she decided. "I think – I'd be alright with that." She smiled back.

"Does that mean you'll come back in and finish the movie?" Bullzeye suddenly asked from above her.

Alexa yelped and recoiled at the sudden voice. She'd been so focused on Spike that she had no idea Bullzeye had come out and was now hovering just above them. Now that she was aware of it, she could hear the gentle flapping of his wings along with the other subtle night sounds. Although his flapping might not be that loud, he was still really big! How in the world had she missed him?! She definitely needed more sleep!

"Would you stop doing that!?" she demanded, clamping a hand over her hammering heart. Spike apparently found it hilarious, because he let out a loud belt of laughter. Alexa just glared at him.

"Oops, sorry. Didn't mean to scare ya," he told her, casually drifting to the ground. For a dinosaur, he was surprising light on his feet.

"Ugh, it's fine," she waved it off.

"So?" Bullzeye asked, eagerly waiting for an answer.

"Um, I'm sorry Bullzeye. I would really like to, but like I said before, I have to get up early tomorrow morning for school. I should really get home so I can get to bed," she told him, honestly.

"Oh, okay," he seemed sad, but understanding. "But, will you come back tomorrow?" he quickly added.

"If – everyone is okay with it?" she said slowly, glancing over at Spike.

"Eh, seems like you might be entertaining to have around. So, I guess I'm okay with it," he said with a sly grin.

Alexa didn't appreciate the inference, but she smiled back anyway. "Then yes, I will be back tomorrow afternoon," she confirmed.

"Great! I can't wait!" Bullzeye cheered and took off back to the house.

"I'll be sure and let the others know. Good night, Alexa," Spike told her as he also turned to go.

"Good night, Spike," she replied, before hopping in her car and driving away.

* * *

**Things seem to be going better for Alexa, for the moment, but what's going to happen when she first encounters the raptors? Stay tuned to find out!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hello again to everyone! So, this chapter will be my first one that takes place within an episode. Hope you all enjoy!**

**Inevitable Eggstinction**

* * *

Alexa knocked on the door of the dinosaur house early the next afternoon, just like she said she would. This time, however, the door was immediately answered by Chedra who greeted her warmly. She let out a baited breath. Good, no more crazy surprises today. At least, that's what she hoped.

"Oh. Hello, Alexa. You're just in time to greet our new little friend," she told her, merrily.

"New friend?" she asked, cocking her head as she followed the blue lady inside.

"Yes, come see," she encouraged.

They stepped into the kitchen to find Stegz bent over a crock-pot. He was occupied with continually flipping whatever was inside with a pair of tongs. He smiled up at them when they entered.

"Hi, Alexa. I'm glad to see you decided to come back," he said happily.

"I'm – glad I was welcomed to come back," she confessed, albeit a bit sheepishly. However, that just seemed to make the atmosphere in the room increase in awkwardness.

"Oh, well, of course." Stegz shuffled a bit before continuing. "Um – would you like to see the egg?" he asked her, quickly changing the subject.

Ah! That's what Chedra had meant by a new friend. She sidled up next to him and peered over the rim of the crock-pot. Sure enough, there was a gigantic, speckled egg resting inside.

"Wow, that's so cool! Where did it come from?" she wondered.

"The raptors. They apparently discovered a clutch of them, and are trying to hatch them into their own raptor army! We managed to get this one away from them, but the others went back to try and get the rest. Three evil raptors is bad enough to deal with. I don't even want to think about the amount of destruction they could cause with a whole army!" he explained.

Alexa flashed him a very skeptical look. She looked down at the egg, and then back up at him.

"And where, exactly did _they_ get these eggs?" she pressed.

"We think they must have found them in the desert after our last run in with them," he replied.

"The raptors, just happened to find viable raptor eggs, in the middle of the New Mexican desert. . ." she paused for dramatic effect and to see if that logic, or lack there of, might sink in. "How?" she asked, dubiously.

"Uh–" Stegz stopped for a second, and then looked back down at the egg. He didn't seem to know how to respond to that. "Well, we just assumed – I mean – it's the right size and color. If it isn't a raptor egg, then what is it?" he wondered.

Alexa hummed. "I'm no expert or anything, but if I had to hazard a guess. Judging by its size, I'd say it's an ostrich egg," she told him.

"An ostrich?" he repeated.

"Yeah, it's the biggest bird in the world. It makes more since than million year old raptor eggs," she added with a smirk.

"I suppose you're probably right, but the raptors are sure convinced that's what they are. Either way, the eggs should still be rescued. I hate to think what they'll do to them when they find out they aren't raptor eggs," Stegz mused.

"Speaking of which, they really should have radioed in by now," he realized, checking the time. "They've been gone too long. That's not a good sign."

Stegz pulled a rather large communicator-looking device out of his pocket and attempted to get in contact with the other dinosaurs. His brow crinkled in worry when there was not an immediate response.

"Extreme Dinosaurs, come in! T-Bone? Spike? T-Bone?! Bullzeye! Please respond!" he shouted into the massive walkie-talkie, but there was no answer.

Meanwhile, Chedra had the TV going in the other room to see if there was any news that could explain where they were. Apparently it was common enough for it to work.

"Stegz, quick! Look at this!" she called a moment later. Both he and Alexa rushed into the living room with her.

"The Island nation of Kokinos has been completely cut off," a news reporter lady was saying. It looked as though she were interviewing one of the natives. He looked extremely stressed out.

"The aliens were – were very strong, and very scary!" he said with panic into her microphone in a strange accent. "They chase everyone into the prison, and then lock the doors!"

"Aliens? What do you mean?" the reporter lady wondered skeptically.

"It is aliens, from Mars! Huge lizard-guys with claws and tails!" he explained dramatically.

"Oh my gawd, really?" Alexa lamented, before she thought better of it. The others in the room both glanced at her. She shuffled awkwardly for a moment before breaking out into a huge grin. "Everyone knows Martians are little, green men – not 'huge lizard-guys'," she joked.

"Well, no matter what kind of aliens actually live on Mars, what he's describing are raptors, no doubt about it!" Stegz declared.

"There are also unconfirmed reports that the military base here on the island has been seized," the reporter continued.

"They've taken over a military base?!" Stegz exclaimed with alarm.

"Since 1960, Kokinos has been a strategic base of nuclear operations for the United Nations," the lady explained.

"We've gotta find T-Bone now!" Chedra announced.

Stegz looked as though he was about to agree, until there was a sudden crackling sound coming from behind them that drew all their attention. He gasped as they hurried back into the kitchen to find that the egg was hatching.

"I've increased the temperature hoping that this one would hatch a little sooner than the others," he explained.

"Well, it looks like it's working," Alexa commented, watching the chick fight it's way out of the egg.

Stegz glanced at the clock on the wall, before redirecting his attention back to the egg. Alexa peered up at him. She couldn't help but grin at the excited look on his face. Despite her assuring him there was no way it was a raptor egg, it seemed like a part of him was still really hoping for a baby dinosaur.

A moment later, something indeed popped out of the egg. Something with a beak, feathers, and a long neck and legs. Stegz and Chedra let out a cry and took a step back, Alexa just turned to them with a slightly smug expression.

"What'd I tell ya? Baby ostrich," she stated.

"Well, it's definitely not a raptor. That's for sure!" Chedra confirmed.

"Yeah, guess you were right," Stegz confessed to Alexa, who just grinned.

Stegz scratched at his head, and the ostrich chick proceeded to mimic him, watching his movements very closely. Alexa gasped in delight.

"He's imprinting on you!" she cheered merrily. "Awww! He's thinks you're his mommy!" she squealed.

"That's completely ridiculous," Stegz said, narrowing his eyes at her.

"No it isn't. Baby birds imprint on the first thing they see when they hatch. And no offense, but reptiles are closer to birds than humans are," she pointed out.

He held his hand out, and the tiny bird hopped onto it, making an adorable chirping sound. He rubbed his head against the large, dinosaur's chest. Stegz looked a little embarrassed.

"Uh, perhaps he's hungry?" he quickly suggested, setting the bird back down on the table.

There was already a bowl of chips sitting next to the crock-pot, so Stegz demonstrated that it was food by popping a handful into this mouth. The baby then stuck his head inside and tried a bite. He seemed to like it, because he continued stuffing his face.

"He likes tortilla chips!" Stegz said excitedly. He pulled out a chip and dipped it into another nearby bowl. "Try some salsa," he suggested, and the little guy went to town!

He ended up falling in the bowl, to which Alexa made a face. They wouldn't want to be eating any more of that salsa! Stegz pulled him out and presented an example of how to lick your chops.

"Good, huh?" he asked.

The chick happily licked his mouth off and made a noise that sounded like he was saying 'ditto'.

"Ditto! That's not a bad name for you," Stegz decided.

"Yeah, especially since he's literally copying everything you're doing," Alexa agreed.

The baby chirped merrily in response. "Ditto! Ditto!"

Chedra began laughing at the whole silly situation.

"I've gotta be there when Bad Rap finds out he has an army of ostriches!" she exclaimed.

"Bad Rap?" Alexa questioned.

"Oh, right. He's the raptor leader," Chedra explained to her, still chuckling.

"It might not be so funny with all those missiles at his disposal," Stegz pointed out, darkly.

"You're right! Let's find T-Bone!" she agreed, and Stegz passed the newly christened 'Ditto' into Alexa's hands.

"Here, watch him until we get back," he instructed, and they turned to go.

"Hey! Hang on a second here! I never agreed to play baby-sitter! I wanna go too!" she protested, the chick chirping and flapping desperately in her arms after his new 'mommy'.

"Oh no! It's going to be way too dangerous! You need to stay here where it's safe," Stegz lectured at her.

"Really? I'm supposed to be scared of a guy with an army of baby ostriches?" she argued skeptically.

"No, you're supposed to be scared of a velociraptor with a dozen nuclear warheads!" he snapped back.

"Yeah, so suppose he does manage to launch one of the missiles. It's not like he'd aim it anywhere near his own location, so wouldn't the safest place right now actually be on the island where we're guaranteed they won't land?" she reasoned smartly. That gave him pause.

"You know, she makes a good point," Chedra admitted.

"Plus your new baby is going to miss you!" Alexa piled on, holding Ditto up to her face with a pout.

Stegz seemed to struggle for a moment before finally blowing out a defeated sigh.

"Alright fine! You can come, but you better behave yourself, understand?" he finished, as they all headed out the door.

"Jeeze, what am I, a five year old?" she whined, packing the chick outside.

"Well, you sure pout like one," he shot back, giving her a sly smile. Alexa had no argument for that.

They stepped lively around to the back of the dinosaur museum, where Chedra hit a button on a device she was carrying. This caused a large, metallic structure to suddenly buzz to life, and a door on the side of it to slide open.

"What – is that?!" Alexa asked in shock.

"This is my ship. How do you think I got here in the first place?" Chedra reasoned.

"I – guess you have a point, but I just – I never –" Alexa felt at a loss for words.

"Well, come on then. We don't have all day!" Chedra lectured, encouraging her to step into it.

Throughout the entirety of her life, she never dreamed she'd ever get to witness something this – _fantastical_! Let alone the fact that it even existed! She was going to get to ride in an alien space ship! She'd never been more excited for anything in her life!

She struggled not to completely freak out as they rose up off the ground and zoomed across the sky towards where they assumed they'd find the others. The baby bird shivered at the disorienting feeling, and she clutched onto him tighter so he'd feel more secure. Stegz noticed her looking all tense as she watched the earth rush by through the window of the cock-pit.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

"This is amazing," she told him slowly, not taking her eyes off her unfamiliar surroundings.

"Yeah, I – suppose it is," he confessed. This had just become so common place for him, that he hadn't even considered what it would be like for someone like Alexa. Guess this was partly why she'd been so insistent on coming too.

They landed on a cliff edge and stepped out and into what looked like some kind of mine. Ditto was trailing along right on their heels. It wasn't too far into the tunnel before they were forced to stop at a wall of rock. It looked like it had been caved in recently. Stegz sniffed at it.

"They're in here," he determined. "I can smell them." Alexa had figured as much.

He pressed a button along the side of the wall that appeared to operate some sort of lift inside the shaft. However, as soon as he did, the whole tunnel began to quake violently. Rock began to shift free from the pile, threatening the baby bird at their feet. On reflex, Alexa snatched him up and began rapidly backing away.

"Both of you stay back," Stegz encouraged the ladies. "I have to try and clear away the rubble."

He then braced himself and began rapidly somersaulting forward, his spines spinning around like a giant table saw. He moved forward into the pile of rocks, slicing through the rubble and creating a new tunnel in record time. Alexa felt her jaw hit the floor. Since when could a stegosaurus do that?!

A minute later, Stegz reemerged with the rest of his dino-buddies in tow, who all seemed to be just fine despite being buried just a moment ago. In fact, it looked as though they had just woken up from a nap!

"You guys go into hibernation or something?" she joked.

"No! Dinosaurs don't hibernate! Spittor used some kind of sleeping gas on us," Spike explained. "And who invited _you_ along, anyway?" he mock lectured.

"I put up a convincing argument," she boasted.

"Hey, whatcha got there?" Bullzeye inquired about the baby in her arms.

"It's your raptor egg," Alexa told him sarcastically.

"But, that's not a raptor," T-Bone unnecessarily pointed out.

"Yeah, that's part of what I need to talk to you about. Come on, I'll fill you in on everything on the way," Stegz assured him, as they all piled back into the spaceship.

"Buckle up guys!" Chedra announced as they took off. "Destination, Kokinos island, at Quadranian light speed!"

. . .

"The military base has enough missiles to blow up half the cities along the pacific rim!" Stegz was explaining as they were coming in for a landing. Everyone but Chedra was gathered around a table in the middle of the ship, Ditto was on top holding a pencil in his mouth.

"In Bad Rap's claws? Scary," T-Bone confessed. "I hate to think what he'll do when he realizes he's got an army of ostriches instead of raptors."

"Yeah, Stegz was worried about that too," Alexa commented.

"With their temperature settings, I figure their ostriches will start hatching any time now," Stegz told him.

"Get ready, guys. And remember code 6-9-5, protection of people and animals is of the highest importance," she announced. That sounded like a pretty good code to Alexa.

"Got it, Chedra!" Spike replied.

They all hopped onto motorcycle looking vehicles that were sans tires. These were apparently able to fly as well. Well, everyone except for Bullzeye, since he could fly on his own. Alexa joined Stegz on his 'air-bike', still keeping Ditto firmly clutched in her arms.

On the way there, they had discussed the best way to get the baby ostriches to safety, and Alexa had volunteered for the job, saying that she'd take care of Ditto as well. The others had been reluctant at first, but finally she'd gotten T-Bone and Stegz to agree, on the condition that she'd be super careful.

"Are you _sure_ it was a good idea to bring the little girl along?" Spike asked as they zoomed towards the base, obviously still feeling highly skeptical.

"Little girl?! I'm technically a legal _adult_, you know?" she shouted back with a glare.

"I'm sure she's capable," Stegz assured him, to which Alexa felt quite pleased. "Besides, she has Ditto with her too," he added, to which she was much less pleased. She scowled up at him.

"Did you seriously just imply that I'm safer because I have this _baby bird _with me?" she asked in a huff.

"Animals tend to have better instincts than humans do," he explained matter-of-factly. He looked down to see her glowering at him. "What?" he wondered in a clueless manner.

She just shook her head and decided to drop it. Upstaged by a fricken bird!

"Alright guys! Let's send them back to the ice age!" T-Bone called out as they arrived at their destination.

They hopped off the bikes and stepped into the entry way of the armored structure. The door looked to be locked down and heavily fortified. T-Bone eyed it for about half a second before coming to a decision.

"Saurian Stomp!" he declared to the others.

"What the heck is –"

Alexa didn't get a chance to finish, before each one of them slammed their right foot against the pavement with such tremendous force that it literally shattered the ground they were standing on! It was like an earthquake, and she wasn't able to keep her footing, falling straight onto her backside. The cracking moved from the ground all the way to the door, breaking it into pieces, but they weren't finished there.

Spike cheered at the results, and then lowered his head, charging at the door full force and blowing it completely away! Alexa went slack-jawed again for the second time that day. The amount of power each one of these guys was capable of was insane! And they had the gall to wonder why she'd been terrified of them at first! Dinosaurs could maim and kill without even breaking a sweat! Did they really not understand how that fact alone could be scary, no matter their actual intentions? She shakily rose to her feet and followed them inside.

"Let's carnivate 'em!" Spike shouted as he ran ahead.

"Get to the prison and bust those people out!" T-Bone ordered Bullzeye.

"On my way!" he nodded and turned in the other direction, taking to the sky. Meanwhile, Alexa trotted along after the others until they came to another closed down door.

"Those aren't raptors!" they heard an irate voice shouting from the other side.

"They _looked_ like raptor eggs. . ." trailed another confused voice.

The dinosaurs didn't hesitate. As soon as they confirmed they had the correct room, they wasted no time in bursting through the door like it was made of paper!

"I hear parenthood is all the rage," T-Bone announced snarkily into the room.

Alexa grinned at the remark. Guess even dinosaurs weren't immune to catchy one-liners. She peeked out from behind them to find three raptors occupying the room. They also seemed to be 'upgraded' with some sort of metal equipment in different locations on each of them.

"I'll show you rage!" hollered the yellowish one with the titanium jaw.

He the roared loudly and charged at them! Okay, yeah, maybe that was scary too, Alexa had to admit. T-Bone burst forward to meet him in the middle, Spike not far behind. They wrestled the raptors to the ground, buying time for Stegz and Alexa to make their way over to the incubator with the new hatchlings. He popped open a little panel on the side and motioned for Alexa to place Ditto there.

As soon as she did, Stegz brought his fingers up to his mouth and let out a loud whistle. Inclining his head towards the door. Ditto followed suit, mimicking him perfectly down to his own little whistling noise. This got the attention of the other babies, and they began to file out of the chamber.

"Good work, Ditto!" he praised. "Okay, make sure they get out safely," he instructed to Alexa, before joining the fray. Alexa was met with a sudden strange sensation. She'd never been jealous of a bird before!

The maroon colored raptor with the tank on his back attempted to try and stop them, blasting at them with a sticky substance that came from one of the tubes attached to his arm.

"Duck!" he cried out, all of them dropping to the ground.

The fluid flew harmlessly over the top of them, planting itself on the wall. Stegz moved over to grab the raptor, lift him off his feet, and then smack him against the wall, where he was now firmly planted with his own slime. He struggled hard to get free, but to no avail.

"Yes!" Stegz cried out, pumping a fist. All the little babies chirped with delight as well. "All right, Alexa. Let's get these guys out of here!" She nodded, scooped up the half-dozen or so babies in her arms, and hurried after him.

A blaring alarm suddenly began resounding all around them. A few seconds later, there was what felt like another earthquake.

"Uh, is that what I think it is?!" Alexa shouted, trying to suppress her panic.

"I'm afraid so," Stegz lamented. "Chedra and Bullzeye are still out there. Let's really hope that they can do something to stop it!"

Everyone bolted outside to see them in the air following closely after the launched missile.

"I see 'um!" Spike yelled.

They all watched as a huge grappling hook launched out of the spaceship, Bullzeye snatched it out of the air and proceeded to wrap it around the nuke.

"They got the missile!" Spike called again, excitedly.

"Yeah, but, what are they going to do with it?" Alexa asked nervously, still clutching the brood of ostrich chicks.

"Just watch," Stegz assured her.

So she did, as the ship reared back, pulling the missile with it. After a moment, the jets on the bomb began to fizzle out before they finally just died altogether. The missile dropped lifeless out of the sky, caught by the cable still wrapped around it.

"Alright, Chedra!" T-Bone called out, everyone else cheering and celebrating around them as Chedra lowered the nuke safely back into its silo.

"Good work! Way to go, Bullzeye!" Stegz added as the pteradon helped guide it back in.

Minutes later, they were all safely back on the ship and headed home. Alexa quietly sat in the back, watching the others talk and interact with all the new baby ostriches. She was busy feeling rather stupid, but really didn't want to admit it. She had basically done nothing to help, maybe she should have stayed behind at the house, after all.

It didn't take long for Bullzeye to notice that she wasn't engaging anyone, just sitting with one of the chicks cuddled in her lap and staring at the wall.

"What's the matter, Alexa? Aren't you happy we beat the raptors?" he wondered.

"Oh, yeah, it's just. . ." she trailed off for a second, not wanting to acknowledge that she was sulking, so she decided to change the focus off of herself. "You – you all are – _incredible_!" she proclaimed, smiling at each one of them in turn.

They all looked a bit embarrassed about her sudden praise at first, all of them except for Spike that is, guess that wasn't what they'd been expecting her to say.

"Well, I don't know if I'd go _that_ far," Stegz said. The others mumbling something in similar fashion.

"Well, I would! In fact, I'd say it's not far enough. After all, I'm incredible _and_ fabulous!" he declared, planting a kiss on one of his biceps.

Alexa burst out laughing at the antics, immediately feeling much better.

"I guess at least someone thinks so," T-Bone muttered.

. . .

Back at the house, the guys wasted no time in cooking food and digging into some tacos, inviting Alexa to join them as well.

"There's only one thing to be said about Chedra Bodzak," Spike suddenly announced, and they all simultaneously let out massive belches that shook the house.

"Ew," Alexa quipped after uncovering her ears.

"I'm honored," she told them with mock appreciation, which elicited a chorus of laughter from all of them.

Meanwhile, Ditto was busy munching on his own pieces of taco at the table. At hearing the burping, he let out a little one of his own. Much less gross and more cute, however.

"Look what you're teaching him!" Chedra scolded, scooping up the little bird in a protective manner. That just caused another round of laughter.

"Hey guys! Check it out!" Bullzeye suddenly called from the living room. They filed inside to find that there was another news report playing on the TV.

"Though the crisis on Kokinos island appears to be over, we're getting more strange stories from the citizens here," the reporter was saying. "You say that 'good aliens' saved you?" She still sounded really skeptical, but moved her mic over for a native lady to answer.

"Yes! And de stopped the missile from launching with their spaceship!" she rambled excitedly. At least the whole 'alien' story was sounding a little more plausible thanks to the ship.

"Uh huh," the reporter replied slowly. "So, where is this 'spaceship' now?" she wondered, sounding slightly sarcastic.

"It takes good aliens home to Mars!" she declared, happily.

Alexa just groaned and face-palmed, glancing over at Stegz. "Okay, fine. I guess I see what you mean. Humans are so _dumb_!" she lamented sadly.

"Uh, what? No! I never intended –" Stegz tried to correct, but was interrupted by the other guys laughing at the ridiculousness of it all.

"Well, what I'd like to know is where the bad aliens went!" Chedra declared. It was true that while the guys had tried looking for the raptors afterwords, it seemed that they were already long gone.

"De bad aliens, de go dat way," the native said, as if she'd been able to hear Chedra, and she pointed out towards the sea.

"Welp, alls well that ends well, I suppose," Alexa decided. "But now if nobody minds, I really need to get some homework done, and maybe do a little work on my project." She turned to head out the door towards the museum.

"You want some company?" Bullzeye offered, merrily following along right on her heels.

"Sure," she agreed, turning her head to flash him a big grin.


End file.
